Disguise Enables First Large-scale Live Broadcast Running Full ST 2110 For Eurovision 2024

Disguise, a leader in real-time production technology, for the sixth time played a major role in bringing the magic and visual spectacle of the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 to a global audience. Appointed as an Official Technical Events Supplier, Disguise provided a full SMPTE ST 2110 workflow from the media server to the LED screens - making Eurovision Song Contest 2024 the first large-scale live broadcast event to achieve this feat.

The set-up saw the stage placed in the centre of the arena with separate LED backwalls and five moveable LED cubes hanging above the stage. Disguise fed the ST 2110 video outputs to the Panasonic Kairos, which was used as a multiviewer. The video output was then sent to the Megapixel Helios LED processor using its newly released 100Gb input module to output to 1,000 square metres of ROE Visual LED. Network distribution was handled by Arista switches, and synchronisation was managed by Brainstorm.

The production team had just 55 seconds to re-set the stage with unique lighting and screen content for each of the 37 acts, designed by Green Wall Designs. Disguise drove video playback across the stage. The set-up also featured a total of 2,168 lighting fixtures, each with their own LED or laser light source, imported into Disguise’s Designer software and pixel mapped and output the content to the LED strips and lighting fixtures across 900 DMX universes.

Disguise worked with the official event supplier, Creative Technology Sweden, to deliver a system comprising eight Disguise GX 3 machines (one Director, three actors and four understudy machines) all equipped with 16 IP-VFC cards. The system was split across two separate red and blue networks for redundancy, with the IP-VFC supporting SMPTE 2022-7 seamless protection switching.

The VFC technology is Disguise’s patented technology that enables users to swap outputs from a Disguise media server with minimal latency to whichever format is required by production. It also ensures that video latency within the video system is kept to a minimum.

Disguise also provided dedicated on-site support during pre-production and critical production phases.

You might also like...

IP Security For Broadcasters: Part 3 - IPsec Explained

One of the great advantages of the internet is that it relies on open standards that promote routing of IP packets between multiple networks. But this provides many challenges when considering security. The good news is that we have solutions…

The Resolution Revolution

We can now capture video in much higher resolutions than we can transmit, distribute and display. But should we?

Microphones: Part 3 - Human Auditory System

To get the best out of a microphone it is important to understand how it differs from the human ear.

HDR Picture Fundamentals: Camera Technology

Understanding the terminology and technical theory of camera sensors & lenses is a key element of specifying systems to meet the consumer desire for High Dynamic Range.

IP Security For Broadcasters: Part 2 - The Problem To Be Solved

By assuming that IP must be made secure, we run the risk of missing a more fundamental question that is often overlooked: why is IP so insecure?